Golden Spike aims to return humans to the Moon

December 7, 2012

The Golden Spike Company, the first company planning to offer routine exploration expeditions to the surface of the Moon — by the end of this decade — was unveiled Thursday by former Apollo Flight Director and NASA Johnson Space Center Director Gerry Griffin, Golden Spike’s chairman, and planetary scientist and former NASA science chief Dr. Alan Stern, President and CEO.

The announcement was made on the eve of the 40th anniversary of the launch of Apollo 17, the last human exploration of the Moon.

“A key element that makes our business achievable and compelling is Golden Spike’s team of nationally and internationally known experts in human and robotic spaceflight, planetary and lunar science, exploration, venture capital formation, and public outreach,” said Dr. Stern.

(Credit: Golden Spike)

The company’s plan is to maximize use of existing rockets and to market the resulting system to nations, individuals, and corporations with lunar exploration objectives and ambitions.

This approach, capitalizing on available rockets and emerging commercial-crew spacecraft, dramatically lowers costs to create a market for human lunar exploration.

Golden Spike estimates the cost for a two-person lunar surface mission will start at $1.4 billion. This price point enables human lunar expeditions at a similar cost to what some national space programs are already spending on robotic science at the Moon.

Dr. Stern and Mr. Griffin described Golden Spike’s “head start” architecture, which has been two years in the making and vetted by teams of experts, including former space shuttle commander Jeffrey Ashby, former Space Shuttle Program Manager Wayne Hale, and Peter Banks, a member of the National Academy of Engineering.

It has also been accepted for publication in the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics’ (AIAA) Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets, a leading aerospace technical journal. The paper will be available on Golden Spike’s web site.

Golden Spike has initiated a series of studies with small and large aerospace companies to begin designs for the lunar lander, lunar space suits, and lunar surface experiment packages to be used on Golden Spike missions.

The company also announced that it will sponsor an international conference for the scientific community in 2013 on the science that can be done on Golden Spike lunar expeditions.

Reasons for going back to the Moon

Golden Spike expects its customers will want to explore the Moon for varying reasons—scientific exploration and discovery, national prestige, commercial development, marketing, entertainment, and even personal achievement. Market studies by the company show the possibility of 15–20 expeditions in the decade following a first landing.

“We could not be able to do this without the many breakthroughs NASA made in inventing Apollo, the Shuttle, the International Space Station, and its recent efforts to foster commercial spaceflight,” said Golden Spike Board chairman Gerry Griffin. “Building on those achievements, The Golden Spike Company is ready to enable a global wave of explorers to the lunar frontier.”

(Credit: Golden Spike)

“We’re not just about America going back to the Moon; we’re about American industry and American entrepreneurial spirit leading the rest of the world to an exciting era of human lunar exploration,” said Dr. Stern.

“It’s the 21st century, we’re here to help countries, companies, and individuals extend their reach in space, and we think we’ll see an enthusiastic customer manifest developing.”

The Golden Spike Company (GSC) is a US-based commercial space company incorporated in 2010 with the objective of providing human expeditions to the Moon.

It is named after the ceremonial final spike that joined the rails of the First Transcontinental Railroad across the United States, on May 10, 1869, and opened up the frontier to new opportunities.

Similarly, Golden Spike intends to break new ground and create an enduring link to the next frontier, providing regular and reliable expeditions to the Moon at prices that create a new market for space commercialization and inspire millions.

comments 10

I would think that any plans for Humans to eventually make it to Mars should be doing a few practice rounds to the Moon…. that would include sending robots to build some habitats (3d-printers) way ahead of sending humans there. I am sure there is a lot we still have to learn before we try to even setup a moon base and live in low gravity environments or anything different than earth.

I have mentioned this idea to my friends on Facebook. What if NASA or some private space company were to send a rocket to the moon. A rocket full of specially designed and programmed robots that had one purpose. To build a base on the moon for mankind to live in and use. I’ve always considered that one reason holding up the building of a base (on the moon) was the expense of astronaut labor. The care and feeding for these people would be astronomical. And they would probably have to be rotated out every so often too. Robot labor on the other hand could work non-stop until the base is completed.

What follows is a portion of the final report of
a NASA summer study, conducted in 1980 by request of newly-
elected President Jimmy Carter at a cost of 11.7 million dollars.
The result of the study was a realistic proposal for a self-replicating
automated lunar factory system, capable of exponentially
increasing productive capacity and, in the long run,
exploration of the entire galaxy within a reasonable
timeframe. Unfortunately, the proposal was quietly declined
with barely a ripple in the press. —- http://www.islandone.org/MMSG/aasm/

Its not turism, it for “minor” space agencies around the world. Intergovernmental negotiation. I like this idea, so the small aerospace entities are not submittet to the caprices of the bigger one’s like NASA, ESA, Cosmodrome, Jaxa.

Maybe the Chinese will book a flight. Of course we will have to put that icon of American culture on the moon, McDonalds. On a more serious note, I think it’s great that they can generate a viable businesses model. I still think near earth is more do able, but if they can generate a profit, go for it!